Rent-a-boyfriend services are growing in popularity as older, unmarried women in China wish to avoid pressure from their nosy families. (Photo: Creative Commons)

Rent a boyfriend services are proving to be a lifesaver for millions of unmarried women in China. At the expense of true love, personal ambitions, and independent thought, the deep-rooted traditions in Chinese culture threaten older, single women to accept arranged marriages or to otherwise settle with men they do not love.

Addressing the need to embrace modern ideas without causing an unpleasant disturbance to old-fashioned tradition, rent-a-boyfriend services offer single working women the ability to return home for the holidays without having to deal with nagging family members and humiliating personal questions. As the Lunar New Year creeps up on Sunday, Feb. 10, the pressure for older, single women to show up with a gentleman increases exponentially.

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"It can be a particularly miserable experience for girls who don't bring home a boyfriend, leading to endless questions about why they're not dating and where their life's going," reported The Telegraph UK. "In this sexist society, ladies over 27 who aren't hitched are labelled 'leftover women.'"

Speaking with BBC, Ding Na confesses her age and her pressure to find a husband.

"I'm pretty old -- I'm almost 30 -- but I'm still single," Ding Na said. "I'm under lots of pressure. My sisters and my relatives all ask me why I'm not married. When they call me, I'm scared to pick up the phone."

One of the more popular avenues of seeking a boyfriend for rent include the popular online shopping site TaoBao. Prices for a boyfriend average to approximately $50 a day. Additional services can be included in the package, including a "kiss" package for an extra $10 to make the relationship seem more convincing for the family.

For an overnight service, a girl must pay the rented boyfriend $80 to sleep in his own bed, $95 to make do in a couch. Sharing a bed is not a part of the package unless the two parties mutually agree to have sex.

As for the men, many have elected to provide the service at the expense of not being able to visit their own family. Agricultural products salesman Li Le shared that his intentions as a rental boyfriend is to do something excited and to meet new people. If all goes well, Li might even find something real.

"It's an exciting thing to do," he told BBC. "I might find someone who shares my interests and it would make both of us happy."